Four Rio Tinto Shanghai employees, who have been detained since July 2009 on charges relating to receiving bribes and stealing commercial secrets, are facing lengthy jail terms following their sentencing at a Shanghai court this week.

Stern Hu, a Chinese-Australian executive who headed Rio Tinto's iron ore operations in China, is expected to serve 10 years in jail. He was sentenced to 7 years in prison on charges of accepting bribes and 5 years on charges of stealing commercial secrets. While Hu pleaded guilty to charges of accepting bribes, he disputed the amount of the bribes alleged by prosecutors.

Wang Yong was sentenced to 14 years in jail, Ge Minqiang received 8 years, and Liu Caikui received 7 years.

Rio Tinto, which has provided regular updates on the situation, has yet to provide a public statement in response to the sentencing. Recently, Rio Tinto reiterated its hope for a transparent and expeditious process for its employees.